Overcast to start,later quite warm in the sun,southwest.
Two Shelduck were still present along the river with a third bird on Brookland.To see Shelduck on this lake is very unusual.If my memory serves me right the last time I had them on there was over forty years ago when a pair was seen with very small young,the red-head Goldeneye was still present.On walking past the sunken marsh a Cetti`s called,at least 4 Bullfinch were in the Hawthorns and a Kestral was perched on the pylon.The Wigeon on Abbey Mead had increased to 3 birds and at least 6 Little Grebe were present but very little else in the way of wildfowl,apart from a few Tufted.walking along the river path past the Heronry they all got up again,at least 25 birds,this also happened with Phil Sharpe a few days ago. Why they should be so nervous I don`t know unless it was because marsh cowboys had been shooting in the area up until quite recently.I then met Terry Laws,he was all excited because he had seen a New Hythe first for him a `Coal Tit`well they are very hard to come across in the lakes area,the only other recent record I know of,if you can call it recent,was in 1985,when Roger Parker saw 2 at Abbey Mead.Terry found the bird and a few Redpoll at the motorway lake.He had also seen the pair of Goldeneye on the Little lunsford lake and the red-head Smew on Alders.Before I went home I popped around there,I saw the Goldeneye and Redpolls but not the Coal Tit or Smew.Perhaps the Smew was out of view behind one of the islands and as for the Coal Tit it could have been anywhere,there are lots of mature gardens in that area.